Team chemistry, effort given are strengths for Pangburn

With no one coming back from last year’s team, Pangburn head coach Ben Jones plans to “throw a lot of things out there” in the first three games of the season. “We are going to try all eight of our kids in the starting lineup,” said Jones, who is in his second year at Pangburn. Pangburn finished 23-9 last season but lost 90 percent of the team’s scoring in the offseason to graduation. “We are playing with a young, inexperienced team,” Jones said, “first year I have ever experienced something like this.” Inside post player Devan Bell is the only senior on the team, and the coach said Bell is the Tasmanian devil of the team. “He wants the ball more than the other person,” Jones said. “He wants to get it and go score, no matter how much bigger that person is. “He just outworks everybody down low.” Other inside options include juniors Garrett Holloway and Joe Barnett and sophomore Hunter Rains. “Garrett is an old-school fundamental post player,” Jones said. “He relies on his footwork, and he is one of our better post players. “Joe is more of our midrange scorer. He can post up and make the turnaround jump shots. “Hunter is the workhorse of the group. He does all the dirty work. He is our trash man. If there is a scrap basket, he will get it.” Junior Braxton Greene, who earned a couple of starts toward the end of last season, leads a group of inexperienced perimeter players for Pangburn. “He is the best outside shooter on the team,” Jones said. “When he gets hot, he can make four, five or six 3s in a game. He drives some but is mostly our shooter. “He looks to carry the scoring load for the most part.” Sophomores Cade McKee and Alex Langley and freshman Luke Rolland make up the rest of the squad. “With Luke, we needed another ball handler,” Jones said. “We had a lot of forwards. He was our junior high point guard, and we moved him up this summer. “He is real calm and steady with the ball. He doesn’t try to

do too much. I can’t have kids doing more than what they are capable of for the success that we need to have.” Langley is 6-1, but he has a bigger wingspan than that, the coach said. “He can post up and drive, and he can shoot,” Jones said. “He is more of a slasher. “Cade is a fundamentally sound outside player and doesn’t turn it over very much. He is just real steady and knows what we are looking for.” Jones said the biggest strengths for his team this year will be its team chemistry and effort. “They’ve been improving and do not want there to be a drop off of last year’s team success,” Jones said. “They are determined to change the culture and build on the tradition of Pangburn basketball.”